The plan to bring an asteroid to earth

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题目与答案

1. paragraph_main 14
   • the need for skill and care
   • choosing the richest asteroid
   • the safest way to protect an asteroid
   • obtaining support for the project
   • an achievable goal, not an impossible dream
   • the need for global cooperation

   答案：an achievable goal, not an impossible dream

   原文定位：This is not something the scientists are imagining could be done someday in the future. It is possible with the technology we have today and could be accomplished within a decade

2. paragraph_main 15
   • the need for skill and care
   • choosing the richest asteroid
   • the safest way to protect an asteroid
   • obtaining support for the project
   • an achievable goal, not an impossible dream
   • the need for global cooperation

   答案：practical, economic and research justifications

   原文定位：Instead, robots could bring an asteroid close enough for them to get there in just a month.、materials mined there could be more easily taken off the asteroid and shuttled around the solar system;Astronomers would also have the chance to get a close-up look at one of the solar system's earliest relics, generating important scientific data

3. paragraph_main 16
   • the need for skill and care
   • choosing the richest asteroid
   • the safest way to protect an asteroid
   • obtaining support for the project
   • an achievable goal, not an impossible dream
   • the need for global cooperation

   答案：the need for skill and care

   原文定位：Engineers would need to be absolutely certain they could control such a potentially dangerous object

4. paragraph_main 17
   • the need for skill and care
   • choosing the richest asteroid
   • the safest way to protect an asteroid
   • obtaining support for the project
   • an achievable goal, not an impossible dream
   • the need for global cooperation

   答案：beginning with a less challenging task

   原文定位：And if the challenges posed by a large asteroid seem too daunting, researchers could always start with a smaller asteroid, perhaps two to ten metres across

5. paragraph_main 18
   • the need for skill and care
   • choosing the richest asteroid
   • the safest way to protect an asteroid
   • obtaining support for the project
   • an achievable goal, not an impossible dream
   • the need for global cooperation

   答案：obtaining support for the project

   原文定位：Convincing taxpayers to foot such a bill could be difficult. However, private industry might be interested in getting involved

6. Louis Friedman
   • A mistake could have serious consequences for Earth.
   • B It might be difficult to arouse interest in an asteroid of limited size.
   • C The project could be an early step in space exploration.
   • D An asteroid's weight makes the project extremely challenging.
   • E The skill gained could save Earth from future danger.
   • F An asteroid could be a useful landing place for a spaceship.

   答案：E The skill gained could save Earth from future danger.

   原文定位：For instance, the mission would teach engineers how to capture an unco-operative target, which could be useful practice for planetary-defence missions in the event of a threat from a meteoroid or comet approaching our planet, he adds

7. Rusty Schweickart
   • A mistake could have serious consequences for Earth.
   • B It might be difficult to arouse interest in an asteroid of limited size.
   • C The project could be an early step in space exploration.
   • D An asteroid's weight makes the project extremely challenging.
   • E The skill gained could save Earth from future danger.
   • F An asteroid could be a useful landing place for a spaceship.

   答案：D An asteroid's weight makes the project extremely challenging.

   原文定位：Former astronaut Rusty Schweickart;points out that although it would be technically feasible, shifting such a hefty and substantial target would not be easy;'You're moving the largest mother-lode imaginable,' he says

8. Dan Mazanek
   • A mistake could have serious consequences for Earth.
   • B It might be difficult to arouse interest in an asteroid of limited size.
   • C The project could be an early step in space exploration.
   • D An asteroid's weight makes the project extremely challenging.
   • E The skill gained could save Earth from future danger.
   • F An asteroid could be a useful landing place for a spaceship.

   答案：B It might be difficult to arouse interest in an asteroid of limited size.

   原文定位：Of course, such a small object might not have the same emotional impact as a larger target. 'NASA isn't going to want to go to something that is smaller than our spaceships,' says engineer Dan Mazanek from NASA's Langley Research Center

9. Joseph A. Nuth
   • A mistake could have serious consequences for Earth.
   • B It might be difficult to arouse interest in an asteroid of limited size.
   • C The project could be an early step in space exploration.
   • D An asteroid's weight makes the project extremely challenging.
   • E The skill gained could save Earth from future danger.
   • F An asteroid could be a useful landing place for a spaceship.

   答案：G Capturing an asteroid would not be an efficient method of research.

   原文定位：However, although the undertaking might be scientifically exciting and provide great insight into the solar system's formation, this is not enough on its own to justify the expense of bringing an asteroid to Earth. Investigations of asteroids can be done much more cheaply with an unmanned spacecraft, says chemist Joseph A. Nuth

10. The Merits of the US Mission

    23 Capture of an asteroid would reduce the time that astronauts travelling to it needed to spend in space. An asteroid could also act as a _____ for further space travel and exploration.

    答案：base

    原文定位：An asteroid would provide a stationary base from which to launch missions further into space

11. 24 The fact that an asteroid would have weaker _____ would allow easier movement of resources.

    答案：gravity

    原文定位：For one, launching missions carrying materials from Earth requires a lot of power, fuel and, consequently, money, because of our planet's strong force of gravity. Since this would be far weaker on an asteroid, materials mined there could be more easily taken off the asteroid and shuttled around the solar system

12. 25 These resources include _____ which could be used in space or on Earth

    答案：metals

    原文定位：Some are rich in metals, which can be mined and used to build space-based habitats, or brought back to Earth

13. 26 and _____ which consumed or used as a source of power. The mission could provide data on the history of our Sun and planets. It could also be good practice if there was a threat to Earth from a body from space.

    答案：water

    原文定位：Others are up to one-quarter water, which could be used for life-support or broken down into hydrogen and oxygen to make fuel